


GameStop Feelings

by Everyoneisheretoday5



Category: Butterfly Soup (Visual Novel)
Genre: Akarsha being nervous, Based off the fact that Akarsha asked out Noelle in a gamestop, F/F, Fluff, I think?, Noelle was not Prepared For This, reluctantly crushing Noelle
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-03
Updated: 2020-11-03
Packaged: 2021-03-08 22:48:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,746
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27364552
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Everyoneisheretoday5/pseuds/Everyoneisheretoday5
Summary: “And even besides that, what’s the point of dating someone in a game? All the choices are made for you. They’re not even real. There’s no point to it.”“Why not date someone here then?”
Relationships: Akarsha/Noelle (Butterfly Soup), Diya/Min-seo (Butterfly Soup)
Kudos: 70





	GameStop Feelings

**Author's Note:**

> Edit: Changed the title, summary and tags to make more sense since I wrote this while half asleep

Senior Year

Noelle taps the side of the building she happens to be leaning against nervously, rolling her eyes at herself as she does it. The stone sticks out in a million places and she run a her fingers against it, not caring if they get dirty.

She shouldn’t be nervous. She sees Akarsha every day. 

With every person that walks past in the distance towards the mall, Noelle scans for signs of a pink, yellow and blue windbreaker, ridiculously bright and impractical. Or better yet, the sound of flip flops, because Akarsha wears them no matter the occasion. 

Noelle fidgets with the hem of her shirt. Something is brewing in her stomach, nervousness that she’s suposed to be accustomed to, due to how much she stresses before tests, but this sticks out. Maybe it’s because there is no test. 

Just Akarsha. 

No Diya, no Min, no baseball team, just Akarsha. 

If she even gets here in the first place.

She can feel people’s eyes on her as they pass by, some random 18-year old loitering outside a large busy mall for seemingly no reason, but she stands straighter to let them know she has business here. She belongs. She knows what she’s doing, and that’s waiting for the girl who infuriatingly keeps on making her _feel_ things. 

The tower that is suposed to stand before Noelle, telling her what direction her life is suposed to lead, (fall in love with boy, devote to studies with no distractions whatsoever, don’t wait at a mall for a girl who annoys you constantly but still makes you smile and wish she were always there) is slowly crumbling with every interaction she has with Akarsha, and if she’s being honest, she’s not sad to see it go. 

Surprising? Yes. Strangely, she has never found a single boy attractive. And she doesn’t know what to think about _her_ so-

“FRENCHMAN!” 

“AUGH!”

A flash of pink, yellow and blue comes slamming into her from behind, looping her arms around the taller girl’s shoulders and dragging her down. Noelle pushes Akarsha off, making her stumble back in her stupid neon pink sandals, and stands straight again, desperately hoping no one in the area saw that. 

“Be careful!! You could have choked me, or send us both into the pavement and risked severe injuries,” Noelle scolds. Akarsha just grins...infuriatingly…. 

“Well I’d say it was a pretty impressive entrance. You happy to see me?” She asks, hands out to either side, shrugging. Noelle doesn’t get the point of that pose, but it’s cu- not worth bothering herself about, so she lets it slide.

“...yes,” Noelle answers, somewhat sheepishly. There’s an annoying heat on her face from the admittance, as she usually doesn’t do this often, but she’s been trying to let down her walls a bit. Akarsha recomended it

...recommended it, because it brings an opening for her to tease her.

“Awwwww, really? So un-Noelle like of you to say that.” 

“Shut up before I take it back.”

“But you wouldn’t.” 

And she wouldn’t. 

Noelle gets the strange urge to hold Akarsha’s hand as she leads the way inside the mall. It occurs to Noelle that she has no idea what Akarsha has planned for this afternoon, only that Akarsha offered to hang out, Noelle “reluctantly” agreed, and apparently it was taking place here.

_I didn’t even bring money. Ugh._

There’s that for poor planning. 

“Akarsha, where are we going?”

“A magical place,” Akarsha whispers loudly, dramatically waving her arm for effect. Her hand has now slipped down to Noelle wrist. All it would take would be...5 words, 5 simple words, and bam, hand would be held. Noelle is concentrating on that more than she wants to. Akarsha’s grip is firm, but soft and warm. “Where you can buy little universes to take home.” 

Noelle’s face lights up. Although she doesn’t have any books she reads for fun at home, she loves hanging out at the library. The librarian practically knows her on a personal level. 

“A bookstore?”

Akarsha laughs. “Nice try. I’m not that much of a nerd.”

Noelle’s face falls, but Akarsha’s description still sounds fun, although how far it is from the original source material is always debatable.

And Akarsha? A full-on nerd?? Even with her near-perfect grades?? Impossible. 

( _Also, are books actually that nerdy_ ? Noelle wonders. _Everyone reads them. They can’t just be attributed to one specific group of people.)_

Sighing, Noelle walks quicker to keep up with Akarsha’s fast pace, her space buns coming slightly more undone with every stride. _I can fix them later,_ she thinks, eyeing how the strands of hair continue to fall out of the elastic. _If she’ll let me._

Finally, Akarsha releases Noelle’s wrist, and gestures widely to a store that Noelle has never been inside of. There’s a theme of green, and video games, plushies, and plastic figures line the walls.

GameStop.

“Come in this wonderful paradise, my fair lady,” says Akarsha, holding the door open and gesturing inside. Noelle steps past her (her arm brushes against Akarsha’s as she goes in) and she stands inside the shop, thoroughly confused as to what the point of this visit is. 

Akarsha walks in after her and seems to be soaking in the sight of the sonic characters and the “funko” pops, as well as other meaningless things, her eyes lit up with wonder and interest, and Noelle can’t help but watch her and smile to herself as she looks around. Something about it is adorable, and Noelle doesn’t have many soft spots, but at least she can admit to this. 

Something seems to strike Akarsha though, and her face changes suddenly but she stays silent, staring off into space. Noelle debates whether or not check on her, or tap her on the shoulder to jolt her back to the present. 

People filter around them, searching, picking up game titles, inspecting limited-edition Sailor Moon mugs. Then Akarsha takes a deep breath, and Noelle turns to her, her hand flitting over the other girl’s shoulder, ready to provide a grounding source if the need be.

“Uhm… Frenchie, you’re beautiful as an estranged penguin,” Akarsha says suddenly, smiling nervously.

It’s clear from her tone that it’s not confident, and she’s not putting any of what she usually does when she tries to aggravate Noelle into her voice. The “beautiful” still makes her heart skip a beat though, despite the comparison to an “estranged penguin” afterwards. In literal terms, an estranged penguin would look no different than a regular penguin, so it’s clear there was no real thought put into her words.

  
  


“I’m not French,” Noelle mumbles for maybe the 10,000th time, a hint of the same familiar annoyance still there, although not as strong as when she first met Akarsha. Now it’s more of a way to continue an ever-going routine. They have been friends for about 4 years now after all. 

Akarsha opens and closes her mouth like a gasping fish for a second or two, and then pushes past Noelle and pretends to be invested in the newest Kingdom Heart’s game. 

( _What are all those characters doing in one place? It’s surely just an edgy money-making scheme. Put that black and white mouse in, and give him a tragic backstory or whatever the kids like these days.)_

Noelle goes to follow her, and leans over her shoulder, hands tucked behind her face politely, her braid brushing Akarsha’s shoulder. Akarsha laughs nervously. 

“sO- Noelle, what video games do you like?” She gestures the large variety of green-rimmed packages. “They have quite a wide selection.” 

“You say that as if I have ever been allowed to play video games,” Noelle replies, a hint of laughter in her voice. Her mother didn’t belive in fun, video games would absolutely be on the bottom of the list of priorities for her daugther. “I don’t exactly have a large knowledge of this subject.”

“Well- I’ll pick some out for you!! Only the best video games for the best nerd.” 

Akarsha quickly began to scour the shelves, zipping up and down the aisles at an unusually fast pace. Noelle stands awkardly near the Kingdom Hearts games, noting the increasingly worried expression on Akarsha’s face. 

_She’s acting so strange…_

... _the best nerd?..._

Noelle’s intuition picks up, and the fluttering that was in her stomach spreads a little more, her face flushing. Something tells her that Akarsha’s actions are of romantic interest somehow, although that’s probably out of her own hoping than what’s actually going on.

Akarsha returns with three games.

They all look completely fucking ridiculous.

“Akarsha… what _are those.”_

Bright anime characters stare up at her, absurdly large eyes staring into her soul. Hearts are everywhere. The text on the containers says a bunch of mushy, border-line suggestive stuff that Noelle never wants to read again. _Disgusting._

“Dating simulators. Figured you might need them,” Akarsha says with a wink. “Since your love life is so pitifully absent.” 

Noelle cringes. “I don’t… need a ‘love life.” 

Well, at least not in those terms. The concept of dating… is not something Noelle is familiar with, but what she’s heard, it sounds half-way pleasant, and Min-seo and Diya seem to be having fun while they’re at it. And the only candidate she can think of? The girl in the stupid windbreaker with the anime-style dating simulators in her hand. It’s ridiculous, but true, and Noelle has learned over the past years in increments to accept it. 

Time to debunk.

“And even besides that, what’s the point of dating someone in a game? All the choices are made for you. They’re not even real. There’s no point to it.” 

Akarsha’s eye twinkles, and Noelle’s senses are on high alert for a millisecond, knowing thats she’s been caught in something, some joke, some prank that’s bound to both humiliate her and make her want to laugh (not that she will of course.) 

“Why not date someone here then?” Akarsha offers. Noelle’s heart speeds up again. _Why is she offering?_ “Like… me.” 

The mood is offset by the familiar tone of voice that Akarsha uses when she’s joking. Of course. But there’s a hint of fakeness to it that Noelle can’t stop questioning. 

“Why- why would I ever date you?” Noelle stumbles over her words, trying to sound stand-offish and fails. “I- you-“ 

She’s trapped. She doesn’t want to lie, for the fear that a chance like this might never come up again, but at the same time, if Alarsha’s joking-

The girl in question steps closer.

“Because I’m being serious?” She says, voice now free of the laughter and mocking, almost as if she changed her attitude on a dime. It only confuses Noelle more, and she nervously steps away. Akarsha’s face softens, and for once it’s genuine. Noelle feels fuzzy. 

“Your- your tone certainly didn’t indicate it. Is this one of your pranks?” She can’t trust it. This would be the perfect chance to lead her on, get her hopes on and then use the fact that she actually did want to date Akarsha as blackmail. 

Akarsha’s eyes dart back and forth to the side, and then she grasps Noelle’s shoulders firmly, looking her straight in the eyes. 

“Does this look like a prank to you?”

“Yes,” Noelle snaps. “This is the perfect chance to take advantage of me. And you literally just-“ 

Akarsha suddenly cups her hands around Noelle’s face, albeit quite gently, and sighs. Noelle’s butterflies only grow bigger, huge, beating wildly against her rib cage. Usually her instinct would be to push Akarsha away and scramble away to the other side of the room, but against all of that, she stays still. 

It’s almost terrifying.

“Guess I’m going to have to actually tell you about shit,” Akarsha says, dating simulators on the floor, forgotten. “Listen here, Eiffel Tower-“

“I don’t-“ 

Akarsha squishes Noelle’s cheeks forward so that she looks like she’s doing an imitation of a guppy. “Shush.”

Noelle shushes. She hopes in the back of her mind that no one is watching this embarrassing scene go down. It’s completely unacceptable. In no situation should she ever allow anyone to do this. 

And yet here she is.

“Okay so… funny story, I’ve had a crush on you for fucking years.” 

Noelle might die. _What. What. What. What-_

She hadn’t noticed her growing crush on Akarsha until it had slapped her in the face 2 years ago. Akarsha had… _smiled_ or something, Noelle couldn’t even remember at this point, and all the stupid things she felt around her suddenly weren’t able to ignored. Then she had a crisis for 2 months over liking girls and avoided Akarsha until Min threatened her with a bad time and she started talking to her again. 

_When did Akarsha?..._

“You were so exuberant and stuck up, and I thought it was funny how dramatic you were to every little thing that got on your nerves. You’d yell, and get hilariously pissy over everything, and you’re STILL like that, and I’d just sit there- feelings and all. I don’t know when exactly it started, but it’s been there for a heck ton of time. Is that enough evidence for you?” 

A silence. Noelle’s mind is backpedaling, completely a mess. She never gets this...unorganized over _anything,_ but figures that Akarsha would be the one to do it. She’s the one variable that throws everything off. 

Speaking of which, her eyes narrow at Noelle’s stunned lack of words. 

“And just so you know, I know you smile at my jokes when you think I’m not looking. You’re not slick, Noelle.” 

She grins. 

Noelle is going to fucking melt if she doesn’t do something.

“Fine,” Noelle grabs Akarsha’s wrists, and pulls her hands away from her face, bright red. Thankfully, Akarsha doesn’t resist. “I’ll go out with you.” 

Akarsha’s face lights up with surprise. “Wait- really? As in you actually like me back and you’re not using this as a way to get back at me for all those dumb pranks?” 

Noelle smoothly moves so instead of gripping Akarsha’s wrists, she’s loosely holding both of her hands. Thier fingers aren’t intertwined or anything, but Noelle isn’t going to do that unless she asks first for the sake of respecting basic boundaries. She isn’t sure what do next though, so she just stands there, holding Akarsha’s hands in place mid-air.

“I’m not planning anything. Where do you want to go?” She asks. The reminder that again, she doesn’t have money because she heard the word “Akarsha” and got ready as fast as she could strikes her and she groans. “Wait- I don’t have money to buy anything with.” 

“No- no problem,” Akarsha stutters before shaking her head and regaining control of her words. “I know a few places. C’mon.” 

And with that, the two teenagers walk out of the store, dating sims abandoned on the floor for anybody to step on. Normally Noelle would have picked them up, but she completely forgot about them. Akarsha said nothing, and smirked.

  
  


Bonus:

“PFFFFT-“

Min does a spit take after looking at the last message on her phone, and coughs, choking. Diya rushes over to help her, patting her partner of 4 years on the back. 

“Woah- you good?” She asks quietly. Min nods, and starts snickering, pointing to her phone.

**Albret Einstrong:** yo me and frenchie are dating now

 **Albret Einstrong:** fuck u 

**Albret Einstrong:** no longer a single Pringle 

**Albret Einstrong:** asked her out in a GameStop 

Diya’s mouth hangs open for a second before she closes it with an snap and smiles softly. “Good for them.”

“I think I saw it coming,” Min says. “You have no idea how many times I’ve caught Noelle or Akarsha staring at each other for no reason.” 

Diya giggles. “How long do you think they’re going to last?” 

“I have no clue,” Min taps her chin, thinking. “They seem completely incompatiable but magnets attract, y’know? They could be like us.” 

“Opposites you mean?”

“Yeah!!!” 

The two of them continue to giggle at Akarsha’s messages as they come in, detailing how Noelle almost got a leaf up her nose from a park, or almost accidentally stole a skateboard. 

“I think Noelle should take back that comment about Liz’s parents having a romantic story that took place in a Petco. A GameStop is pretty much the same thing except video games.”

Diya nods, and continues to watch the updates from over her partner’s shoulder. 

  
  



End file.
